he silver dragon returned today. It flew in from the east directly overhead, and then spiraled down towards our caravan. This was another one of those tense moments that had me second-guessing myself: <\/span>Are those scales silver or are they white<\/span><\/i>? It got close\u2014uncomfortably close\u2014and then called out to us. \u201c<\/span>Ho! Caravan!<\/span><\/i> Ice trolls ahead of you!\u201d Several of us shouted thanks in some form or another in response, and it flew off.<\/span><\/p>\n Silver dragons are known for taking a protective role around humanity. Actually <\/span>dealing<\/span><\/i> with the ice trolls directly would have been better, but that is probably a bit too much to expect. It is not its job, and I think the species in general takes the same philosophy as parents when looking after children: it is important to learn to fight your own battles. A little nudging here and there is fine, but intervening directly apparently makes you soft and dependent. I admit I have mixed feelings about this approach to pedotrophy, though, probably because mom\u2019s definition of \u201ca little nudging\u201d differed significantly from the norm: she left the hen house open to the fox, and the extent of her guidance was \u201cfigure it out\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n Sandru stopped the caravan so that we could work out a plan, and the first thing we did was consult with Ulf. \u201cIce trolls are smaller and weaker than regular trolls, but they are adapted to the cold. And, they\u2019re <\/span>smarter<\/span><\/i>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Of course that is a relative term. It\u2019s not difficult to be smarter than a troll, but he didn\u2019t mean for it to be a backhanded compliment: ice trolls really are cunning, or at least cunning enough, and have been known to create skillful ambushes. We could very easily have stumbled into one if the dragon hadn\u2019t warned us. We needed to know what we were walking into.<\/span><\/p>\n I asked Nihali to scout ahead and see what she could learn. This earned me a number of stares. Every time I send her out or involve her in our activities, I get questioned about her safety and my apparent disregard for it. I never know what to say to this.<\/span><\/p>\n Etayne treats Ling like he is made of glass, and I get it. Much of that is simply the reality of being a witch, but on top of that she has her reasons\u2014very personal reasons\u2014and I don\u2019t question that. But it seems everyone has the same expectation of me, and that is just not how it is. I am sorry to disappoint you. My relationship with Nihali is no less important to me, but what I need from her is not the same as what Etayne needs from Ling.<\/span><\/p>\n Whatever their opinion, no one argued with the results. Nihali returned in short order with the rough location of the ice trolls\u2019 camp, and we dealt with them.<\/span><\/p>\n Were they as smart as Ulf suggested? More or less. They attempted a respectable, albeit unoriginal, ruse that certainly caught our attention. Their only mistakes were assuming that we didn\u2019t speak giant and wouldn\u2019t recognize flanking maneuvers. In all fairness, I suspect few would pass the first test, and though the second was fairly obvious, if you were close enough to see it you were probably in trouble, anyway. Unless, of course, you were equipped and prepared as we were.<\/span><\/p>\n I would never say this to the others, but this skirmish nags at me. It was the first time we have gone out of our way to engage\u2014to <\/span>kill<\/span><\/i>\u2014creatures native to this part of the world. Logically, I understand that they are a menace, dangerous not just to us but to everyone who lives here, and we saw enough human bones in their camp to reinforce that point, but there\u2019s this fine line between preemptive and aggressive. On which side did we just fall?<\/span><\/p>\n S<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n now has been falling steadily since late this morning. This would be lovely if it weren\u2019t for the winds. By mid-afternoon, heavy white flakes were blowing all around us, making it difficult to even see the road much less make any progress on it. Until they died back, it wasn\u2019t possible to tell if the snow we were seeing was newly falling or merely being relocated from points north.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cDied back\u201d is not the same as \u201cstopped entirely\u201d, however, and drifts have started to form on the windward side of the wagons that mark the perimeter of our camp. We\u2019re going to have to dig out in the morning before we can get moving, and that\u2019s assuming we\u2019ll be able to move at all.<\/span><\/p>\n I\u2019m not exactly a stranger to snow or even blizzards, but such things are rare occurrences along the Lost Coast and I\u2019ve never been in snowstorms as intense and heavy as this. Growing up, we\u2019d get at most an inch or two here and there, and maybe one big snowfall every few years. It was fun as a kid, but it\u2019s less so when you can\u2019t just go inside to get out of it. The campfires created from the beads are helping to keep us dry, and our spells and enchanted items are keeping everyone warm, but these things do not keep the wind from whipping the canvas of our tents and the covered wagon, nor do they keep the snow out of our faces and hair. The latter in particular makes guard duty particularly unpleasant. I predict a long, damp, and restless night.<\/span><\/p>\n T<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n he storm has been our faithful companion for three days now. Only a few inches of snow seems to be falling overall, but the winds have been a constant presence whipping up to blizzard and whiteout conditions for hours at a time. Yesterday it took us much of the morning to dig out and de-ice, and I doubt we traveled more than a dozen miles afterwards.<\/span><\/p>\n Today, we didn\u2019t even try to move. The drifts were several feet high, nearly burying the supply wagons, and the wind was gusting heavily. We\u2019d get one wagon cleared, but in the time it took to do another the first would be inundated with more snow and ice. It wasn\u2019t worth wasting our energy on a pointless activity. We have opted to wait it out until morning and see if the weather improves.<\/span><\/p>\n I suspect this is just a <\/span>taste<\/span><\/i> of what is in store for us in the coming months.<\/span><\/p>\n T<\/span><\/p>\n he storm finally broke overnight. After days of gusting winds, the air around us is eerily still and silent. We are surrounded by an ocean of snow, with drifts like waves stuck in time. We are supposed to turn off the Path of Aganhei today and head for the village of Iqaliat, but I don\u2019t know how we will be able to see the road we are currently on, much less the next.<\/span><\/p>\n Skygni dropped in on us as we were de-icing the wagons in preparation for leaving camp. We asked in passing what he thought of the storm. \u201cGet used to it,\u201d was his reply. I thought that pretty much spoke for itself, but he had more to add. \u201cIt\u2019s not common to see this so early in the year, but we\u2019ll get more of it as we head north.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n So that is something to look forward to.<\/span><\/p>\n W<\/span><\/p>\n e can finally see it clearly in the distance: the cliffs that form the edge of the arctic plateau. The High Ice. After two months of travel we are nearly there.<\/span><\/p>\n Ulf says we will make Iqaliat by noon. I asked him what we should expect.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThey are mostly a nomadic people. The main caravan route bypassed their village, and they are generally suspicious of outsiders.\u201d He paused and then said, \u201cThey have their own ways.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n I interpreted that to mean we would not exactly become close friends during our stay. Ulf concurred. \u201cDon\u2019t expect them to be friendly until they get to know you, and you them.\u201d He pulled out a strange talisman that looked like it was made of remorhaz scales. \u201cThis was a gift from their hearth mistress. It\u2019s a token of friendship between me and their tribe.\u201d Which meant he would do most of the talking.<\/span><\/p>\n Why make the stop at all, given the cold reception we are likely to receive? Because they can tell us what the conditions are like on the Ice. If we ask the same question in Unaimo\u2014which is the last village along the main caravan route on this side\u2014they will in all likelihood (and rather sensibly, I might add) just tell us not to go and leave it at that. Unfortunately, this is not one of our options. We need information, not a nanny, so Iqaliat it is.<\/span><\/p>\n T<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n here are basically two decent people in this entire village: the hearthmistress, Sonavut, and the chief. Two gods-be-damned people in a village of over one hundred, and truth be told? I think the chief is just being polite. What is wrong with these people?<\/span><\/p>\nLamashan 11 (Path of Aganhei in the Hoarwell March, Evening)<\/h3>\n
Lamashan 13 (Path of Aganhei in the Hoarwell March, Evening)<\/h3>\n
Lamashan 14, 4712 (Path of Aganhei in the Hoarwell March, Morning)<\/span><\/h3>\n
Lamashan 17 (Hoarwell March, Morning)<\/h3>\n
Lamashan 17 (Iqaliat, Afternoon)<\/h3>\n
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